German Patent Application No. DE 10 2005 016 009 A1 describes a method for stabilizing a vehicle after a collision, in which the driving state of the vehicle is monitored with regard to the occurrence of a collision, a setpoint value for a vehicle movement variable is calculated independently of the driver's steering intent, and the vehicle movement variable is adjusted to this setpoint value in the event of a collision. To be able to carry out the stabilizing intervention regardless of the driver's steering intent, the method is applicable to vehicles having an active steering, in which an additional steering angle may be superimposed on the steering angle selected by the driver. The effect of a shock response on the part of the driver in the event of a collision of the vehicle may be reduced in this way, thereby achieving a more rapid and more effective stabilization.
The method described in German Patent Application No. DE 10 2005 016 009 A1 makes it possible to carry out a stabilizing intervention also in the event of a collision via a driver assistance system in the vehicle, in particular on the basis of the yaw rate measured with the aid of a corresponding sensor. Since such interventions (e.g., wheel-individual brake interventions of an electronic stability program ESP) may have extensive effects on the movement of the vehicle, it is necessary to ensure that the measured variables on which the calculation is based are correct. This is ensured by monitoring the sensor signals. For example, a check is performed by simple monitoring to ascertain whether the signal of the sensor is within physically plausible limits. If this is not the case, then the driver assistance system is necessarily switched to a mode of a lower functionality, for example, for which the monitored sensor signal is not needed.
International Patent Application No. WO 2006/106025 A1 describes that sensor signals which are processed in a driver assistance system may be subjected to a plausibility check in borderline situations pertaining to driving dynamics. The signal plausibility range is enlarged in the event of a collision to keep the corresponding vehicle system fully functional. At least one plausibility criterion, for example, a predefined limiting value for an absolute value, is modified here, thus ensuring that the function of the higher-level system is also preserved in borderline situations.